Foodulture!

I’m a typical ‘Amdavadi’ and alike most of them, I whole heartedly follow this one chant we believe in “Khavanu, Peevanu.. Majja ni life!” You can call me a hedonist who believes in savouring and hogging over food; anytime, any day and in every mood. We might be surprised to know that there are some people who love food to such an extent that their survival, their heart and soul ends and begins in the name of food. It is about how crucial food has become in our life or at least some of us, who don’t live to eat but eat to live.

 I feel so sorry for all the skinny people who choose to starve over relishing such amazing delicacies. I mean do you see the variety people are coming in terms of taste, flavour, colour (yes, that too!); and with the widening of our rich Indian culture and acceptance of different food culture around the globe, we’ve opened arms towards becoming a cosmopolitan. Look at the weirdest and the craziest inventions in terms of food, how taste has become the most important factor and somewhere like Gujarat, a dry state with no night life, Sundays are meant for gourmands.

Keeping business in mind, any venture with even a pretty average ambiance and service quality but better in terms of taste and exquisite snacks to choose from, works! The same lane might have vendors selling similar Maggi but the choices you can pick from plus the extra Butter and Cheese, oh don’t you love hogging over it? You might love to stay in a five-star hotel but given a choice, won’t you prefer the street food with the Desi Tadka despite the large Buffet but with a bland taste? In fact, not just vendors; I see websites, cookery magazines, competitions and shows with really eccentric people ready to eat just any animal, insects or herb doing extremely well!

Some might disagree on the point that women can’t eat much and they tend to diet or waste more than eat but those days are gone when women would eat less to save a pound. Well, at least I can proudly say that I would rather gain a few pounds rather than denying myself the chance to devour something cheesy, chocolaty or fattening. Diet might seem an easy way to punish the ones who appreciate a really good sense of taste but Mayo and Thousand Island sauces can change your perception (Subway salads!). Chicken, Barbeque, Sausages, Sea Food, there seems to be no end to food. You could go off for a vacation to relish amazing delicacies miles away or you could take a break from work and experiment having new street food.

Food has become a part of our culture, we connect food with the people we meet and in fact come closer with the variety and spices in it. I’ve seen people coming together when they share their favourite dish, people trying to relate themselves and their moms with their homemade food and friends and families embracing occasions and memories over prolonged get-togethers. You could very well spend hours with your cousins and enjoy midnight munching or you would be someone who would sneak into the kitchen to relieve yourself from stomach pangs. Couldn’t we all relate ourselves to all the times when coffee became an excuse to meet someone and catch-up? Through generations, we’ve carried with ourselves our food legacy and today, it has become the most integral part our lives!

With so many things to choose from, we appreciate, admire and have accepted all sorts in trofology but we have failed to accept the love for food. Even though we all share the same love, the amount varies from skinny to obese and somehow; we fail to accept the obese. I being an ardent food fan have never let people kill my love for food and we connoisseurs should carry immense pride in doing things we love. For me, food is the cure to everything, to rejoice or distress and its deprivation can make me turn into a monster! So today, I would like to raise a toast to food; for all the times the little munching that came to my rescue when people couldn’t, the chocolates I had to better my mood and the fun I have while cooking in experimenting with food because to you, there’s no substitute! Cheers to food J